*** Official Clevo P150EM / Sager NP9150 Owner's Lounge ***

Not to be the Debbie downer of this thread, but it took 5 weeks for me to get mine, assuming it arrives when UPS says it will.

And I've got a 8600m. Portal (the first one) on minimum FTW.

 

Haha wow! And I thought it was bad that I have to play Dragon Age: Origins at low settings and sub-1080p to get a decent framerate! lol

To be fair, my iMac has served me well, and I will keep it because I'd like to have both a desktop and a laptop. I've only recently become interested in PC gaming, so at the time, I wasn't concerned with the GPU when I bought the iMac (in late 09)

 

Haha I'm running off a dell with 512mb of ram lol opening two word pages makes it flip out!

 

I was in exactly the same boat. When I got my 07 MacBook Pro, I wasn't into gaming (or anything cpu/gpu intensive, really). Although the PSU, MoBo, I/O board, Screen, and WiFi card have all failed on me at some point, applecare has replaced them all, so I basically have a "new" old computer.
I'll be keeping it as an emergency backup.

Anyway, I hope your new computer arrives within a smaller time frame than mine did.

 

9400* but it doesn't make a difference. I had a MacBook with 9400M and i managed to reach diamond in sc2 on it lol.

 

This thread, http://forum.notebookreview.com/sager-clevo/661430-update-radeon-7970m-sager-resellers.html, used to be where people chatted about order dates and potential received dates.

Just sayin.....

 

So with the 7970m, why aren't you ranked #1 in grand masters? haha.
(I know you've been having some issues with SC2, though. I hope we can get those sorted out. I want HotS to run beautifully.)

True, but technically this thread is a more appropriate place for such conversation, as that thread was dedicated to updates on the 7970m, and this thread is for random chatter about the p150em......... ok, sorry.

 

I'd say email or PM is more appropriate for random chatter about order and ship date speculation than this thread but that's just me.

Personally I'd like to learn a little about P150EM results, tweaks, performance etc than wade through 2 pages of random chatter about guys hoping they get their machine soon.

Again, jmho.

 

There are also plenty of threads talking about results and tweaks for the P150EM. This thread is an "Owner's Lounge" and has no specific topic. Everyone who ordered a laptop is an owner. So your opinion is rather stupid, despite its honesty.

 

Hey guys, planning on ordering a np9150 and had a quick question about the mSATA options since I have never used one. From my understanding they are primarily used for caching but can also be used as a primary drive.

With that said, I plan on getting a SSD for my primary drive (running Windows), but would it be possible to:

1) Dual boot from the mSATA. That is - can I have Windows on my SSD and have a separate installation of Linux on the mSata?

2) Have the mSATA set up to act simply as extra storage for the primary SSD (no separate OS on the mSATA)

Sorry if this has been answered elsewhere, I tried searching and couldn't find an answer. If it has a simply link to the article would be great!

Thanks!

 

My computer came in and everything is perfect except for the backlit keyboard. The left side of the keyboard does not turn off, it is constantly on and blue. When the rest of the keyboard is on the left side is always washed out. I haven't tried to re-install the drivers but could it just be the keyboard?

 

You can do both. An mSATA drive is just like any other drive. It's just smaller and uses a different connector.
If you're planning on dual booting, make sure you install Windows first. Then install Linux. Most of the popular distros will automatically install GRUB and configure it for you. If you install Windows after you install Linux, you will lose GRUB, and you will no longer have a choice for which OS you want to boot into.
If you just want to use it as a data drive, all you have to do is format it to your file system of choice.

 

because i play terran

 

Point taken.

That definitely sounds like the keyboard to me. I would call your reseller and see what they have to say.

Yeah, my friend plays zerg and constantly makes fun of me. (I don't have an account, so when I play at a LAN party or something, its pretty sad )

 

Just have to say I am falling in love (for want of a better term) with my P150EM.Now I am getting the hang of the switchable graphics - running a game, exiting it, waiting for the config popup, setting it to high performance and using the MSI Kombustor app for some other things its performing perfectly.

I still would like the ability to manually turn the 7970M on and off via software rather than the MSI Kombustor work around and I would like a full list of ALL applications in the Switchable Graphics section and I HOPE we get good future driver support from Clevo/AMD - don't need them every month - just need to know we will get something quality every 6 months or so to keep up with improvements.

But for now it's very very nice.

Oh and I've tried the following games all work fine full res, maxed out graphics as I would expect - most I've had to add into the Switchable Graphics

Sins of a Solar Empire: Rebellion
Starcraft 2
Diablo3
Farcry 2
Dead Space
Supreme Commander
Call of Duty 4 MW (this one I didn't have to add)
Might and Magic Heroes VI

 

HI ALL,

Is BF3 still having issues on 7970M on the Sager NP9150?
I was considering 7970M over 680m gtx. I heard issues like enduro driver issues...is this resolved????

 

as I have expected, no. Thats why I already refunded my 7970m clevo because I knew AMD/Clevo will take a while, I don't want to wait months after paying for a $1700 laptop. so I re-ordered the same laptop with 680m.

If all you care about is BF3 performance, I suggest going with alienware with a 7970m as they are not experiencing the unstable performance that clevo 7970m are experiencing with BF3. Or you can just go with a 680m and NEVER have to worry about getting crashes/BSOD's when updating gpu drivers. (coming from a guy who owned a 5870m, gtx 560m, then back to AMD 7970m which I completely regret).

 

"Stupid is as stupid does".......Forrest Gump

I'd say someone who ordered but hasn't received their machine is a potential or future owner. Can't say that I've seen a Potential Official Clevo P150EM/Sager NP9150 Owner's Lounge.

But I'm just splitting hairs now.

 

after waiting for a month tomorrow its the big day this is my first gaming laptop so i cant wait to get my hand on it! hopefuly wont have any issues with 7970m

 

its best to prepare your anus when installing/updating GPU driver, amd ftl.

 

The driver that comes with the laptop is fine. Works great.

Just understand that when you run a game for the first time it will (in my experience - 99% of the time) run by default with the Intel 4000 graphics.

Just run the game and then exit out and a little popup will appear to ask you to configure the app in the switchable graphics to either Power Saving or High Performance.

Obviously for gaming (well atleast most modern games - maybe not bejeweled or Plants vs Zombies or something ) you would want to use High Performance.

Just set it for High Performance by clicking on the coloured icon and then Apply and then start the game again and it will use the 7970M.

It works fine once you know what's going on.

It would be very nice if there was a little visual in the system tray or in the top right corner or something that showed when the laptop was running in "Power Saver" (Intel 4000) or "High Performance" (7970M) just for clarity and as an extra point of detail but even so everything does just work.

I wouldn't try updating any drivers (I'm not even going to bother changing these drivers until an official Clevo or AMD driver for this setup comes out. It works. Not going to change it. ) until you've used the laptop for a week or more just get used to the Switchable Graphics first.

Oh and the very sharp front edge

 

does it get very hot with 680m?

 

All indications are that the 680m runs considerably cooler than the 7970m.

(poor Cloudfire got banned before he could see me praise the 680m)

 

calm your ti ts dude

most people like myself had absolutely zero problems installing drivers for 7970m no bsod or anything

if you dont like amd and are dissatisfied with their products then just stop buying them you dont need to be whining on the forum for this long over it

 

which one is better for gaming 15 inch or 17 inch? Lets if am insterested in BF3

 

Both the 15inch and 17inch Clevo (P150EM and P170EM) have 1920x1080 resolutions - the main difference between the two would be weight - an extra kilo for the 17inch - other than the screen size of course.

If you want the most power and Nvidia driver support via Optimus go for the GTX680M

If you want to pay $200 less then go for the 7970M.

My 7970M (laptop in my sig) gets ~P5800 in 3DMark11 if that is any indication for you. Not sure what the GTX680M gets but it's probably more.

I haven't tried BF3 yet .

 

Agreed!

That would purely be a matter of preference. If you are used to a 17" screen then a 15" may seem a bit small. I'm loving mine but I've never used a larger screen.

 

Maybe a silly question here but do you have to do the switcher stuff only when running on battery or all the time? And do you have to do it every time for a game then? Thanks!

 

I just want to "warn" other buyers that haven't bought anything yet and help them avoid going to the wrong path that I went to (amd). My ti ts are fine and dandy sir. but my NP9150EM is not fine from crashing from installing the stock clevo GPU driver from the disc right after a clean windows 7 install if you want that kind of performance then yes go for AMD and let them play with your ti ts instead of providing drivers that actually doesn't fix anything Go AMD! yay!...

 

I haven't tried running it on battery at all yet. I've used it at home and in the office and just carry the powerpack with it.

You only have to do it once per game. It's a setting you are basically telling the driver which video card you.

 

What's you're deciding factor, price, stability, or speed? Don't forget that intel and crucial use the same NAND for their SSD's.

Not specifically, but there is an icon telling you how many programs are currently using the 675m.

Does the GPU fan work as an indicator? Or did AMD botch the cooling too?

Only if price is not a factor and sandforce does not bug you.

SS doesn't work either, there was a huge thing about this a while back.

There's no user error involved (or it's not the problem). The reason some people seem to have more issues than others is based on what games they play, the AMD driers butcher some games more than others.

SC2 is the elephant in the room right now.

EDIT: Aww, did this post really take 12 hours to show up from when I posted it? Lame, NBR.

 

sounds like you got a lemon

no such problems here

im no amd fanboy even i considered trading in my 7970m for 680m less than a week ago however i figured out msi afterburner on screen fps/gpu usage thingy was reducing my fps tons in many games
that and running msi kombustor and background has helped immensely



its fine if you want to warn others but your "warning" wreaks of amd hatred and a bit of childishness

 

Thanks very much!!!

 

Guys... try FN+1 NOT FN+F1... I just accidentally pressed it and my fan took off!

I am using a 9130, but i think it might be the same!

 

hasnt it always been fn+1

thats what works for me

im not sure if fn+f1 works for anyone considering its a hot key for some screen thingy already though im not sure what (has little icon on the f1 key)

 

Fn+1 makes my fan take off as well, but I don't know if that means it's turning the GPU on. I say that because all I'm running right now is Firefox, iTunes, Steam, and the task manager, and the fan still runs full blast (when I press Fn+1, that is).

Also, potential newbie question. What exactly is the "trick" with MSI Kombustor? Clearly, several people are using it, but how do I get it and what does it do? I've found MSI Afterburner. Is that the same thing?

 

Oh... I've been hearing that it's fn+f1 which is why it didnt work for me... in any case, that's the hotkey to turn off the touchpad, that's why it wasn't "working"

 

More OC results, 990/1510 clocks:

AMD Radeon HD 7970M video card benchmark result - Intel Core i7-3610QM Processor,CLEVO P15xEMx score: P6496 3DMarks

With turbo fan on (Fn + 1 works for me) max temp was 72c. Ran 10 min Furmark with turbo on with max temp of 87c.

I actually scored a little over 6500 at 975/1500. BSOD at 1000/1525.

 

What are you using to OC the 7970M?

 

no it doesnt turn on the gpu just the fans

if you run msi kombustor in background (not actually turn it on just idle) it helps a bit with utilization issues with 7970m msi kombustor comes with msi afterburner usually should be able to extract it from same place as you do afterburner after the download

its like furmark

o lol im dumb thought it was a screen didnt try using it
ya i think someone did a mistype/brain fart and said f1 instead of 1

what drivers are you using i got this with 1000/1500

Edit: nvm the graphics scores on mine are slightly higher which makes sense
your physics score is like 200 points higher must be because of the ram or sumthin

 

GPU fan ramps up when the 7970M is running for sure. Not enough at the beginning to notice though but it does get louder over time.

Mine seems to be quite cool so far (touch wood) - using Kombustor I haven't seen massively high temps yet - certainly nothing over 70C at all (Alt-Tabing in between running a game to have a quick look).

SC2 runs fine for me - did have to add it to Switchable Graphics of course. Only apps I haven't had to add are 3DMark11 and Call of Duty 4 MW

Yeh a nice little indicator would be nice. Yeh that Optimus one sounds cool. We are all nerds (if you buy a Clevo I think it's a given), well I am at least and I love lots and lots of information.

I wish the CCC had the Overclocking section like on the desktop drivers to see fan speed and OC the card.

 

I used Slick's guide. Just follow his guide to OC with MSI Afterburner, do not use the drivers he lists.

http://forum.notebookreview.com/ali...-mobility-7970-m17x-r3-illustrated-guide.html

I only had 1 sub registry key to change when I got to this point in the guide:

under, you'll see severl sub registry keys starting with 000...for example I have 0000, 0001, 0002, 0003, 0004. These are the ones that you are interested in. If you have more, then you will do the same thing to those as well....

Click on each numbered key individually and find the and look for a property called ENABLEULPS...and set the value to zero. Double click on it and change the value to zero

Works great.

 

Cool thanks for that.

What about a tool for monitoring GPU fan speed? And CPU fan speed?

 

I'm in California and I received an email stating the laptop is being shipped to Nebraska first to avoid California Tax. Does anybody know how long it will take to arrive?

Also, I have about $100 to spend and I will be using the laptop for college so I would love some of my programs to run fast on the SSD. Which SSD and with how much memory would you guys recommend?

 

I got my shipping confirmation today (Monday) and it is estimated to be delivered on Wednesday. This is from LPC-Digital though so YMMV.

As for the SSD, I am going to try to wait it out for a 128GB or 256GB at ~$.5/GB. Samsung, Intel, Corsair seem to be the more reputable brands.

 

Guys, I've worked for some hours here analyzing and problem solving, and have made a complete consolidated summary of the heat issues many many Clevo 150 and 170 users are having (especially me), along with a couple unique solutions. They're scattered everywhere in different forums, and now they're in one place. Just about anyone with a Clevo 150 or 170 model can benefit!


http://forum.notebookreview.com/sag...solutions-here-please-sticky.html#post8694123

 

with $100 you can only afford a 128GB one. As usual, i'd recommend the Samsung 830 (was $90 at newegg today... deal's dead i believe), Crucial M4, Intel 510/520. The m4 and 830 have been dropping in prices so just wait for another deal (surf slickdeals.net)

 

I dont use ctrl because I have extra EDSF buttons available I do have long fingers so I can reach either way. I still dont use it though.

 

The wimpy computer wars have been declared On my old mobility radeon 9600 series (before I had to downgrade to a 7300 series because the old one fell off) I could play Portal on low, but if I went to the course with the first attack turrets and grouped every movable object I could find together, everything glitched up and fell through the floor (including me).

But they're more of owners than the "prospective buyers" who come here to ask if they should get this or something else, right? Seriously, they could just go ask Captain Obvious and spare themselves the trip.

Woah, case in point there.

That's the first thing that I used to ask before I got mine and confirmed for myself that Fn+1 really doesn't work on some P150EM's.

Seconded, but you still couldn't get a good 520 for $100. I also don't trust sandforce yet.

 

Aww man. I wish I could keep the 750 gb hard drive and get a small SSD in a different slot for essential programs. I could do that with the mSATA right? But those are more expensive.